Ol Pinky’s Maryborough subject to online hate and damaged work cars
Staff from a Maryborough pizza shop claim they have been the target of racist attacks and online hate in recent weeks. Read what happened.
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Pizza shop staff in Victoria’s west believe recent attacks on delivery cars and online hate are racially motivated.
Staff at Maryborough’s ol Pinky’s pizza shop believe recent attacks on two work vehicles, causing thousands of dollars in damage, and recent posts in community groups — including baseless claims the business was involved in human trafficking — were motivated by racism.
Manager Adele Oates said the pizza shop employed a number of Pakistani staff who had been made to feel unsafe following a number of claims intended to damage the store’s reputation and property.
Ms Oates said two work vehicles were targeted on the same night in March, with windows smashed, tyres slashed and one of the vehicles egged.
“I feel really sorry for the staff. The boys here work hard and love the community but unfortunately these recent attacks we believe to be deliberate and targeted,” Ms Oates said.
“Most of our community is wonderful, and many have visited us to pass on their support and disapproval of recent events, but it's still incredibly disappointing.”
She said it was not a coincidence that both vehicles were targeted on the same evening and that other vehicles nearby were spared.
It comes as a community Facebook page is set to be deleted due to false claims, including about the business.
Ms Oates said recent negative posts on social media used images of products that can’t even be found at the business in order to discredit the food.
She said there were also extraordinary baseless claims the store owner was involved in human trafficking.
A Maryborough police officer confirmed that police were aware of the incidents.
Social media group, ‘Maryborough Thumbs Up Thumbs down Vic’ announced earlier this month it would discontinue the platform indefinitely after a number of posts and comments were found to be racially motivated.
Admins of the page with almost 3000 followers said they had received notice that recent submissions were false and it had “become apparent” the community it served “harbors (sic) intolerant attitudes towards individuals of different ethnicities”.
“It appears that those individuals commenting and promoting these erroneous entries are not genuine patrons of Ol Pinky’s, as they failed to identify the incorrect packaging displayed in the accompanying images,” the admin statement said.
“As a result, we have decided to discontinue our management of this platform for an indefinite period of time, as it has become apparent that the user community we serve harbors [sic] intolerant attitudes towards individuals of different ethnicities.”
“It is advisable for this community to undertake a process of introspection in order to evaluate and rectify their inappropriate behaviours and attitudes,” it concluded.
Management from the store said they supported the community during the pandemic by providing free meals to elderly locals and they were now asking the community to support them.
Ol Pinky’s held a staff meeting on Monday afternoon to support employees impacted by the recent events.
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